I tried to follow their instructions but found it easier to glue the surrounds rather than sew them. This is how I "prepare" my surrounds... I cut the ribbon to length. Then fold in half, make a crease (I usually take a pen and mark the center). Then fold one end up to the middle and make a crease or mark and repeat with the other end. You should now have three marks or creases on the ribbon evenly spaced. Follow the rest of the instructions but using a little dot of hot glue as you match up the dots. This is probably not making a lot of sense but HTH and maybe after this weekend I can post some pics.